


A Trip To Tree Noyxu

by SpringZero123



Category: Coraline (2009), Kubo and the Two Strings (2016), Missing Link (2019), ParaNorman (2012), The Boxtrolls (2014)
Genre: Adventure, Alternate Universe - High School, Fanfiction, Forests, LAIKA Films - Freeform, Laika crossover, Modern Era, Multi, Multiple Crossovers, Road Trips
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:34:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,036
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28235517
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpringZero123/pseuds/SpringZero123
Summary: A mysterious researcher named Sir Lionel Frost chooses eight innocent children for an unforgettable trip deep into the woods, to the ancient Tree Noyxu; the home of the last sasquatch on Earth.
Relationships: Lionel Frost/Adelina Fortnight, Norman Babcock & Eggs (The Boxtrolls) & Coraline Jones & Kubo (Kubo and the Two Strings)
Kudos: 16





	1. Prologue

The wind swiftly travelled through the blissful trees of the forest, abruptly disturbing the peaceful silence amongst the old man in white. His eyes were closed shut as he slowly breathed in the fresh bloom of nature before him, then he breathed out with a wide smile.

He ignored the growing footsteps from behind him, already knowing very well who owns them.

“ _Lei è esaurendo i materiali commestibili per mantenersi,_ ” the man in red stated grimly from behind, as he saw the small movement from the other man in front of him. “ _Sì,_ ” the old man in white agreed bluntly, as the two continued to stare at the vibrant green landscape in silence.

“ _Lui riuscito a trovare soggetti adatti?_ ” Asked the old man in white.

“ _Sì, compagno,_ " the man in red replied firmly as he stuck his nose in the air. “ _Dove sono loro?_ ” The old man in white demanded, looking at his _compagno_ with his brows furrowed in desperation.

“ _Non preoccuparti, compagno,_ ” the man in red paused, making the old man in white turn his head towards him. “ _Il nuovo membro ha trovato il nostro prossimo gruppo di sospetti,_ ” the man in red continued, unaware of the innocent smile slowly creeping on his face.

The old man in white grinned widely, before he returned his gaze at the forest below him. “ _Magnifica._ ”


	2. Youth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Ahh, it feels so good to finally make another book. Good luck to me finishing this one lol  
>  \- Spring**   
> 

_He can’t help but think that the young teacher’s eyes were always watching._

Kubo wasn’t sure if the man beside him was avoiding everyone, or if he’s just trying to act normal so that students won’t look at him, like he's trying not to be suspicious.

He didn’t know if it’s because he hasn’t seen that teacher around lately, or if there’s something troubling him to begin with. Maybe both. 

Who was he to judge so quickly when he’s simply a new student in this school? He'll let this slide, for now.

The young teacher’s gaze landed on him, as Kubo quickly diverted his one eye away. 

He could feel those sharp eyes peering through his entire being, and not long after his breath is becoming slightly unsteady, fearing that he might be in big trouble on his first day. 

“Are you new here?” The young teacher asked after a while of silence, making Kubo slowly turn his head towards him with a shy glance.

The young teacher looked friendlier than he thought he would. Though, he hasn't really met a person with a very pointy nose quite like his before, so Kubo only gave him a small smile. 

“Yes sir, I am,” he replied softly, getting a better view of the adult beside him. 

He’s holding some sort of a British cane with his left hand, and Kubo found it a bit odd, because this teacher looks like he's still a fine young man. 

Maybe it’s his personal choice of style, in which if that’s truly the case, then Kubo secretly digs it. He’s not sure when he’s gonna tell that to the teacher, but someday, someday he might. 

“Sir Lionel Frost?” Somebody from inside the Admin Office called out, and to Kubo’s surprise, the young teacher stood up from his seat while slightly fixing his sleeves. 

“I better get going now, young one,” Lionel acknowledged, nodding his head to Kubo, before finally entering the admin office. 

Kubo raised a brow as he watched the young teacher close the door behind him, getting this feeling that this won’t be the last time he’s gonna see Sir Lionel Frost.

A staff member walked out from inside the Admin Office, snapping Kubo out of his thoughts. 

“Kid, what’re you doing here?” She asked.

“I’m waiting for my schedule,” Kubo replied simply, and the unsteadiness of his breathing returned to him almost instantly. This time, he's sure that he’s in some sort of trouble.

“Well, you’re waiting in the wrong office, kid. You should be getting that at the Principal's Office," the staff told Kubo carefully. 

"But, you're in luck! It's just down this hall," the staff added with a smile, tilting her head to the left. He followed where her head was pointing, and low and behold, the Principal’s Office sign was right there.

"Thank you, ma'am!" Kubo thanked the adult with a quick salute, making the staff member laugh before the two individuals went to their own ways.

Meanwhile, Lionel quickly entered the Admin Office, swinging his cane side to side as he waited. 

The employee raised his head as he grabbed his eyeglasses from the far side of the desk.

“Sir Lionel Frost?” The employee asked him, looking over the young man’s figure. Lionel simply nodded in response, his mouth staying in a thin line, staring silently. 

Lionel noticed how the employee was looking at him weirdly, so he gave a small smile.

“I’m taking over Mr. Lint’s last class for today,” He told the employee after a short while, slightly tilting his head. 

“English class?” He reiterated, as the employee nodded stiffly.

“Uh huh,” the employee agreed, before clearing his throat. 

“Yeah, uh, good luck by the way,” the employee advised him, making Lionel smile brightly in response. He was ready.

“I have many more hours to prep myself, so thank you for that," Lionel told the employee with a firm nod before he exited the office, then swiftly closed the door behind him with his staff. 

~

Kubo feels like he’s a very lucky boy today.

His second to the last subject dismissed their class early, and he got the news that his next subject’s teacher was in an Official Business, so it’s basically free time for him.

Not only that, but it seemed like Kubo is getting the attention of a lot of students. 

Like, it wasn’t just one or two people who approached him in these past couple of hours, but literally everyone around him had either glanced his way, stared at him, gossiped about him - all of it. 

He doesn’t know if that was a good thing or not, but he’s not familiar with the rules around here, so it's a thing he definitely needs to watch out for.

Kubo found the last class on his schedule easily, given that whenever he asked someone not too far from him, they were more than willing to answer all of his questions. 

But despite all these things he’s noticing about the students in this school, it does give him this ease of talking to others around him without getting the feeling that he's in some way bothering them.

The moment he entered the classroom, once again, all eyes were on him. This is going to take a long while to get used to, he’ll have to admit. 

He found a seat near the windows, and easily started a conversation with one of the students. 

Such a flimsy exchange to go along with, if he’s being honest. She was very nosy about him, indeed, pestering him with a lot of questions. 

He thanked himself for having this creative way of crafting his words, dodging every single one of her accusations in a smart way. 

Interestingly enough, she's somehow at his level. It’s nice to see that he’s not the only one that’s able to talk this well.

“I’ve told you this multiple times already, Wybie!” Someone exclaimed from behind, interrupting their fun wordplay. 

Kubo turned his head to where that shout came from with his brows furrowed. 

Winnie, the kid he’s been talking to for a while now, followed his gaze, as both of them watched the two friends argue quite loudly, with some other students around starting to watch along.

“Who is that?” Kubo asked her, slightly tilting his head to the side as he continued watching cluelessly. The curly haired redhead quickly turned her head to him in disbelief. 

“You’re really new here, aren’t you?” She joked with a loose chuckle, making him roll his eye at her with a small smile.

“Though jokes aside, new kid,” she started as she straightened her posture, before she scooted closer to him. 

“The gal is Coraline Jones," she started, pointing at the blue haired girl. 

"The boy next to her is Wybie,” she added, pointing at the curly brunette boy beside Coraline.

It still boggles his mind how Winnie was even able to get this much information. 

“I thought you were new here yourself,” he countered, genuinely baffled by her knowledge. 

“Well, I have my ways,” she bragged with a small shrug. 

“It’s a shame to see that you don’t have yours,” she disclosed playfully with a wink, making him scoff at her in surprise.

Though, he didn’t choose to compete anymore. “Touché,” he mumbled quietly with a small laugh, before turning his attention back to the two friends once again.

Poor Wybie, he must be bloody nervous right now.

“Jonesy, are you sure you’re not going to-” Coraline’s loud chuckle cut off Wybie’s sentence short, bringing a hand on her forehead. 

“How many times would I say 'yes' to convince you that I’m totally fine with slug hunting?” The blue haired girl reassured her best friend once again, making Wybie sigh heavily in relief. 

“I-I can’t help but feel like you’re not gonna be comfortable with any of these th-” this time, Wybie’s sentence was cut off by Coraline’s loud sigh, that came off more like a tired groan. 

“I told you, it’s fine,” she jeered sharply, trying to control herself by drawing her attention back to writing on her notebook. 

The curly haired brunette chose to remain silent as he rubbed his shoulder shyly, trying to avoid everyone's gaze. 

Even though Winnie has told him that those two are, in fact, friends, Kubo surely doesn't seem to get the impression that they are.

"Poor guy," another voice said not too far from where they are, and when Kubo turned his head to face the person, he saw a tall brunette casually sitting on Winnie's armchair; which is a huge testament considering how scary Winnie can be.

"Keep your voice down, Eggs. You don't want Coraline hearing you," Winnie quietly warned 'Eggs', and unsurprisingly the tall person does what he is told. Looks like she knows this boy.

"Hey Winnie, is he one of the new kids around here?" Eggs asked her, as the two friends finally returned their gaze on Kubo. The one eyed kid smiled at them, giving off a small wave. 

"Oh yeah, his name is Kubo," Winnie told him.

"Rad," Eggs commended with a wide smile, nodding his head to the smaller boy. 

"The name's Arthur. But I like it better when people call me Eggs." Now that made Kubo raise a brow. 

"Why?" Kubo asked without thinking.

"It's his favorite food," Winnie replied quickly, looking over at Eggs with a smirk. Eggs rolled her eyes at her before he crossed his arms, with Kubo silently chuckling at them two.

"Seriously Winnie, in front of the new kid?" Eggs complained, gesturing his hand to Kubo. 

"We're all new kids here, no need to be shy," Kubo laughed, as Winnie nodded beside him in agreement. 

"See, Eggs? He doesn't bite," Winnie concluded, prompting Kubo to raise a finger. 

"That… honestly depends," he countered with a shake of his head, making all of them laugh.

"Cut it out, Alvin!" Someone shouted from across the room, getting everyone's attention, including them three. 

And when Kubo's eye landed on the ongoing commotion, it was a scene he never thought he'd see in this school.

A boy in a red hoodie is leaning against the lockers at the back of the room, while a larger boy - who looks like he's supposed to be with the higher years rather than here - looming over his figure with a bunch of other kids with him.

"What 'chu gonna do, huh? Call your ghost friends, goober?" Alvin, supposedly the older kid teased, as the two other boys beside him laughed. 

The look on the smaller boy's face was the trigger that pushed Kubo to stand up and defend the other boy, but someone's hand had stopped him from taking another step forward.

"Rule number one for transferees; never get in a fight with any of the old students if you want to stay out of trouble," Eggs told him solemnly. 

Kubo was just standing there as the small boy was bullied verbally, and he was honestly thinking of ripping Eggs' hand off of his shoulder.

He would have done that, if it wasn't for the ginger head boy pushing Alvin away. Thank goodness. 

"Hey! This has nothing to do with you, fat boy." My god, the nerve this guy has. The insult still got Kubo to grit his teeth as he watched silently.

"Can't you just lay off of Norman? You're not even in the right classroom," the ginger head countered, and that statement prompted Alvin and his buddies to actually look at the classroom they're in, and the look on their faces made the ginger head grin widely. He stood corrected.

"The fat boy with boobs made me look like a joke," Alvin grunted under his breath, glaring hard at the ginger head before pointing his finger at Norman. 

"This is not done yet, ghost jerk." And with that, they left like a bunch of cowering idiots.

It took him a while before he found his voice. 

"You know them, Winnie?" Kubo asked, not really expecting an answer from her. 

"The chubby ginger is Neil, while Norman's the kid in the red hoodie," she stated plainly like it was some sort of report, as the three continued to watch Neil and Norman talk from afar while they headed back to their seats.

"Heard a rumour that Norman can see ghosts and spirits, along with his cousin," Winnie added, making Kubo turn his head to her. 

"Cousin?" He asked off the bat. 

"Greetings, class! Sorry if I'm a tad late," a strict but familiar voice echoed inside the classroom, carrying a bag on his left hand and his signature British cane on the other. 

He quickly placed his bag on the teacher's table as Eggs and all the other students scrambled quickly to get to their seats. 

The once noisy and chaotic class became dead silent in the matter of seconds.

“You don’t look like Mr. Lint, sir,” Coraline implored in a strong voice from behind, as the others agreed silently. Lionel smiled innocently to the blue haired girl. 

"Oh no, I'm not Mr. Lint,” he implored as he shook his head dismissively. 

Kubo was also right about one thing; their first meet wasn't going to be their last after all. 

"The name's Sir Lionel Frost, children," Lionel announced to the class, leaning against the teacher's table comfortably as he swung his cane from left to right. 

“Lionel Frost? Never heard of him before,” Winnie whispered to herself, turning her head towards the one eyed kid, only to see him look back at her, just as confused as he is. It's not that Kubo hasn't seen this teacher before, he's just wondering why he's here.

“I'm here to be Mr. Lint's substitute teacher for the day," Lionel said simply, and Kubo thought he'd never see the day where all students would groan tiredly in chorus. 

"Ohh." Was all Kubo can say to that. Winnie noticed how his eye was fixated on the teacher in front, making her eyes squint at him suspiciously. 

"You've seen him before?" She asked from beside him. After a few moments of hearing nothing, he finally nodded his head slightly in response. 

"Yeah, we met at the admin's office earlier today," Kubo disclosed, trying to pry her off as he continued to look at Lionel. 

The young teacher caught his eye, making the situation worse.

"What were you doing at the admin's office?" Now Kubo slightly regrets answering her questions whenever she asks him. 

"I was there to get my schedule," he snapped, but she didn't seem to notice his intention, so Winnie just scoffed playfully. 

"You don't get your schedule there, idiot."

"It seems like all of you are a tad busy at the moment," Lionel crowed sharply, throwing Kubo and Winnie a stern look, instantly making the two kids silent. 

The young teacher's eyes lingered on the two for a while, before turning his head back towards the other students.

"But with that said," he continued, "I would like to propose a game I'd want to play with you all."

_What?_

"A game?" Coraline mocked from behind with a playful scoff. 

"Where do you think are we, dude? In kindergarten?" Another student from behind joked cheekily, causing everyone to laugh. 

Lionel chuckled along himself, waiting for everyone's laughter to die down. 

As Kubo looked at him however, he briefly saw a playful glint dance from the teacher's eyes, and that alone is enough to tell him that Sir Lionel's up to something.

"Not just any game," he countered sharply as he slowly walked across the room, with the sound of his cane echoing loudly.

"So... there's a catch?" Another student from the far side of the room asked him. He turned his head towards the voice, then smiled playfully. 

"Why, of course," Lionel answered. "Whoever wins will be rewarded with the trip of a lifetime."

"Now that sounds interesting," Kubo appealed playfully, nodding to himself with a small smirk. 

“Either that, or he’s just messing with us.” He turned his head to Winnie, who has the same expression on her face.

"Where? To Antarctica?" Another student joked with a small laugh, but Lionel ignored the student's attempt in comedy and turned his body to face the whole class from behind the classroom, seeing everyone's interest on edge at what he’s about to say next.

"The group of kids who wins this game will be taken to Tree Noyxu; the home of the last sasquatch on Earth.”


	3. Ownage

_No one was certain if Sir Lionel was just playing around the bush as a joke, or if he’s being grave about what he promised._

“Maybe he’s being both?” Winnie whispered warily from beside him, but Kubo can feel that something fishy is going on here. It felt like Sir Lionel and his intentions were all meant to happen, in a very unnatural way.

The young teacher walked towards the front of the class once again, then leaned comfortably against the table as he observed each student inside the classroom, who silently watched every move he made.

"Now," Lionel stated to the class, his voice strong but smooth. His cane swung from left to right as he walked towards his bag on the teacher’s table, letting his words hang in the air for a moment. 

He opened his bag and reached for something inside with one hand, as the students remained silent but incredibly curious. 

"Do you see anything?" Winnie asked silently, but even with his height and enhanced sight, he can't seem to make out what his teacher is planning. 

"No," Kubo whispered back with a shake of his head.

After a minute of rummaging inside his bag, his one hand pulled out a box of playing cards, making the majority of the students gasp in surprise. 

"Aren't those illegal inside schools?" Coraline pointed out from behind with her nose up in the air in suspicion, making the young teacher scoff briefly. 

"I’ll only be here for a day, young girl. Breaking the rules could only mean so much,” Lionel countered with a conniving smirk, as Coraline nodded her head in amusement.

Lionel swiftly moved around the table as he shuffled the cards with such finesse, almost as if his hands were guided with some kind of _magic_. With each card maneuver the young teacher made, the students are left speechless in awe. 

Finally, as if he’s ending a whole stage performance, he layed all his cards flat on the table. With one quick tap of his cane against the table, all the cards faced downwards, making the students gasp simultaneously.

“Is he really a teacher or is he just a con man?” Winnie joked with a small laugh, prompting her one eyed friend to do the same. 

“Maybe he’s being both,” Kubo replied with his signature smirk, smartly mirroring what the red head told him earlier. 

“You’re so impossible,” she retorted with crossed arms. 

Lionel straightened his posture as he faced the students once again. He cleared his throat before he finally spoke. 

“It seemed like you were all _enticed_ by the little show I put on for you. But, that’s not the purpose of the cards on the table in front of you,” he explained, as he reached for chalk nearby. 

Not a minute later, he started to draw a figure on the black board that looked like an intricate eagle symbol with a cryptic message hidden within its lines.

Lionel placed the chalk back and dusted its grains off of his gloves. 

“Eight cards on the table are withholding this symbol, while the rest are all blank. I will call your name one by one to pick a card from this deck. I can see all of you from here, so after you pick your card, make sure that no one sees it; including yourself,” he stated, as everyone started to talk among themselves.

“After all of you receive their own card, we will reveal what card you chose all at once. No cheating,” Lionel added strictly.

“No promises, Sir!” Eggs shouted playfully from his seat, making some students laugh. The young teacher only nodded his head to Eggs, as in turn the tall student saluted back at him smugly.

“Now, for the eight students who will be chosen after this, they would be receiving more than just the luxury of visiting an old ancient tree that’s home to the last sasquatch on Earth,” Lionel proposed, as the majority of the students listening raised a brow. 

"And that would be…?" Winnie questioned the young teacher further as an encouragement for him to continue his proposition. 

“Bonus grades in all of your subjects, and passing scores in any quiz, project, seatwork, homework and activities you’ll be missing out on the duration of our little road trip.”

And that one sentence caused a wild riot inside the classroom, with all of them cheering at this little competition that the young teacher placed amongst them. 

Kubo himself can’t contain his disbelief and genuine shock, as he sat there on his seat grinning and laughing like a madman while covering his mouth. 

“He’s got to be the best substitute teacher ever,” Kubo exclaimed with a loud laugh.

“Oh, I am SO getting that eagle card,” Winnie gushed to him playfully as she laughed along with him. Though, that’s the biggest problem at hand. Now that Sir Lionel has dropped the cat out of the bag, _everyone_ is after one of those lucky eagle cards. 

Seriously, who doesn’t want a chance to get a free vacation without worrying about your academic priorities for a short while? 

Kubo sure does want to get his hands on one of those lucky eagle cards, but the mantra in his mind is telling him that it’s okay if he doesn’t.

“Settle down now, children,” Lionel addressed, as he brought out a long sheet of paper of what seems like their class masterlist. 

The students started to calm down, and Lionel made sure that all of them were silent before he called out their names. 

When the students understood that that was his intention, and when the room seemed soundless, he started.

“Wyborn Lovat.”

“Oh shit,” the student cursed a little bit too loudly, earning a round of silent chuckles from everyone. 

The curly head shakily stood up from his seat, accidentally grinding the cold metal of his chair loudly against the floor, as everyone flinched at the sudden uncomfortable sound. 

Wybie’s small steps echoed loudly inside the room, as he felt his classmate's eyes on him, which completely wrecked his mind. But, he desperately tried to stay silent and just continued to walk towards the teacher’s table. 

Eventually, he arrived in front of Sir Lionel, giving the young teacher a shy glance. 

“You made it, young man,” Lionel commended, and some students inside the room found the audacity to laugh at the poor boy. 

Sir Lionel then gestured to the table with the small tilt of his head, tapping his cane against the floor, almost sounding like a constant metronome to match the continuous ticking of the clock. 

Wybie suddenly felt himself picking a card out of nowhere, instantly holding the card against his chest to make sure no pair of eyes saw it. 

“Well done, Mr. Lovat,” the young teacher stated with a small smile. The curly head looked like he was genuinely surprised to see a card already safe in his possession. 

But instead of questioning it further, Wybie only nodded, as he made his way back to his seat without uttering another word. 

As Kubo looked at the other boy, he noticed that Wybie looked terribly uncomfortable, like he's on the verge of having a panic attack. As soon as he saw the curly head talk to Coraline though, he seemed just fine. 

“Weird,” Kubo whispered to himself, and as soon as he saw Wybie looking at him, the one eyed kid quickly averted his gaze away and shook his head.

“Cedric Von Ace.”

“Salma Ramsay.”

“Elizabeth Afton.”

“Elvis Brown.”

“Norman Babcock.”

“I really do hope he’s doing well after what happened earlier,” Kubo said to himself, as he continued to watch Norman pick a card from the table. 

“I’m sure he’s okay,” Winnie implored, as Norman walked back to his seat. 

“After all, he’s got company,” she added, as she watched him talk to Neil, who presumably is his closest friend as he sat on his chair.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Kubo replied, giving Norman and Neil one last glance before looking back at the table.

“Abigale Catherine.”

“Coraline Jones.”

The way she stood up before confidently walking towards the table prompted Winnie to cover her mouth, and Kubo is confused if that amused her or if that disgusts her. 

“You okay?” He asked, and luckily he was able to control his laughter as he watched her clear her throat while straightening up her posture. 

“Y-yeah, I’m alright,” she nodded, but Kubo can sense if a person is lying, and his gut is telling him that his friend might be doing so.

“Ted Timothy.”

“Freddy Cawthon.”

“Michael Glend.”

“Hazel Brown."

“Arthur Trubshaw.”

"Oh god, he is such a big dork," Winnie sighed as she shook her head, but Kubo only laughed at his new found friend as Eggs made his way towards the table while walking like he's being controlled by some sort of ventriloquist. 

"Chavereen Aicelle."

"Winnifred Portley-Rind."

"Goodluck!" Kubo teased with a toothy grin as she threw a glare at him, before walking towards the table. 

Another round of students were called and had picked a card of their own, and then another, and then another. 

Midway through Sir Lionel's selection of students, Kubo thought that despite him being a target in Sir Lionel’s eyes, the young teacher would probably call him last.

And that's what exactly happened.

"And lastly, Kubo..." Lionel paused, trying to read his last name. 

He stood from his seat calmly, ignoring the voices he heard from his fellow classmates as he walked towards the young teacher with a bright smile.

"It's okay, Sir," he laughed loosely. "A lot of people struggle with reading my last name too," Kubo added with a nod. Lionel raised a brow at the one-eyed kid before he nodded his head. 

"Well, Kubo, I believe this last card belongs to you," Lionel’s gloved hand gestured towards the table.

His hand shook as he reached out for the last card, though he didn't quite understand why he suddenly felt so nervous. _He's just getting that card, right?_

So in an attempt to calm himself down, he closed his one eye and took a deep breath in. When he exhaled, he quickly took the last card on the table. 

An excruciating jolt shook his entire being as soon as his hand came into contact with the card. His head and his heart throbbed painfully, but physically, he appeared to be just fine. 

He looked at his teacher, who in turn just stared at him. It seemed like the time momentarily stopped for a short while, but as soon as Sir Lionel's cane landed onto the ground, Kubo snapped out. 

_Out of what, exactly?_ He asked himself, but at the same time he didn't want to know the answer to that at all.

Instead, he silently walked back to his seat, feeling like a complete embarrassment. 

As soon as he sat on his chair, he swore he could feel his hands shaking violently, but when he gazed down at them, they weren't shaking at all.

"All right, children," Lionel announced as he clasped his hands together. 

The loud sound made Kubo flinch, though what's weirder is that when he looked at Winnie, she seemed very unnerved as well. 

He immediately looked at the other students around them, but pretty much all of them were okay.

"Since all of you have chosen their card, we shall now reveal them on the count of three," he implored with a stern nod. 

"One. Two. Three!"

Kubo flipped his card, and he can't even believe it; he got the lucky eagle card. 

Everybody started to flip their cards as well, with voices of complaints and sheer shock flying all over the room. He began to look around him, searching for someone else to feel that something's clearly not right.

Lionel made his way behind the teacher's table, placing his hands flat on the wooden surface. 

"Now, I want to see the eight students with the eagle cards to stand up from their seats," Lionel announced once more as his brows furrowed tightly.

Winnie was the first to stand up, and then he stood up as well, and not long after Eggs stood up too. Then the Coraline girl stood up, followed by Wybie; the first one called. Norman also stood up, alongside Neil. 

One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven.

There were only seven of them.

"Where's the last student?" Lionel asked in a low voice, as everyone started to look around them to locate the one who has the eagle card.

Finally, the last student stood up slowly, and this was the only student Kubo hasn't seen anywhere before. 

She looks like she's timid, judging by how frequently she tries to avoid everyone's gaze.

"Do you have the eagle card, young girl?" It took the girl quite a while before she revealed to Sir Lionel the eagle card on her hands. 

The young teacher studied her for a while from the teacher's table. Finally, he nodded his head, which allowed the girl to finally put her eagle card down.

"Congratulations to those eight students chosen to participate in our field trip to Tree Noyxu. Will you please announce your names before you come up front to fill in the important details?"

"I guess let's start from the front then," Winnie started as she cleared her throat. 

"I'm Winnifred Portley-Rind," Winnie stated in a loud voice, as Lionel wrote down her name. 

"Please step in front Ms. Portley-Rind," the young teacher implored, and Winnie wasted no time and walked towards the teacher.

"The name's Kubo Mizūmi," Kubo stated not long after, as he waited for his friend to finish up. 

When Winnie made her way back to her seat, that was his cue to stand up and walk towards the teacher's table, and after that he walked back to his seat. 

"Arthur Trubshaw, everyone! But, I'd like it _better_ if people call me 'Eggs'," Eggs announced cheekily, making Lionel smile. 

“I appreciate your enthusiasm, Mr. Trubshaw," the young teacher acknowledged, as Eggs made his way towards the table.

"I'm Coraline Jones." 

"Wyborn Lovat, but people also call me Wybie."

"I'm Norman. Norman Babcock."

"The name's Neil Downe."

"And now, we're down to the last one," Lionel announced, as he looked past the student earlier. 

"What's your name, young girl?"

She kept her mouth shut, though after a few minutes, she eventually spoke. "Agatha."

"Agatha…?" The young teacher trailed off as he gestured his hand to continue her sentence. 

"Agatha Prenderghast."

"My, such a beautiful name!" Kubo admires Sir Lionel for understanding how it must be a challenge for this girl to even _speak_ for herself. 

"Now, would you be a kind child and please step in front to write down your information?"

Agatha didn't speak, as usual, but she did nod her head and walked towards the table. 

Kubo can't help but feel bad for her for some reason, because she might not want to talk to anyone at all on their little field trip.

For a brief moment her frail gaze landed on him, and somehow the way she looked at him made him feel like a complete freak. 

It just occurred to him how much he’s been staring at other people, and the sight of her quickly averting her gaze away from him made him feel bad for himself.

Maybe during their field trip, he’ll find the time to apologize for his weird behaviour.

After she finally made it to her seat, the bell rang from outside the room. 

"I guess that concludes our class for today! Again, congratulations to those eight students who were chosen. I'll be picking you up this Saturday morning with the addresses you've provided," Lionel announced one final time as he packed his things up, just like the rest of them were.

"Adventure awaits, children!"


	4. Unity

_He was always prepared for this day to come._

The soft shake from his fiance had been the thing that woke him up from his deep slumber, as she greeted him with a warm smile.

There were no words shared between the two lovers but sweet smiles and quick glances to each other. Adelina wanted to go with him on this trip, even though they were both _very aware_ of what this could cost them both.

But she didn’t want him to do this alone, and it’s not like he was complaining anyway.

The mini bus provided to him was already set, but the two of them still checked again just to make sure that everything was ready. 

They gave one more smile to each other, with Adelina’s hand reaching for his shoulder to smoothen the small wrinkles left on his sleeves. 

“Let’s go?” She asked him softly, even if she already knew his answer.

Lionel nodded. “Yeah. Let’s go.”

~

“You sure you already have everything you need, Coraline?”

How she hated those usual flimsy words from her parents. They’re acting as if they were not paying attention and have absolutely no idea what was happening. 

Still, she managed to turn her tired groan into something like a sigh, and forced a fake smile on her face as she nodded, hoping for her dad to get the message. 

As promised, the bus arrived on the time Sir Lionel promised it would be. Her parents gave their simple goodbyes by giving her kisses on the forehead, but at this point she didn’t really care that much for all the reasons that they don’t too. 

The young teacher stepped out of the mini bus, approaching their family with his signature cane on one hand and his charismatic smile.

“Good morning, Mr and Mrs Jones,” Sir Lionel greeted as he walked towards the two adults with his all too familiar gusto. 

The young teacher looked at Coraline, and the blue haired tween simply saluted in response. 

The grown ups started to talk to one another, something about how this is an amazing opportunity for Coraline to get out of the house. She literally couldn’t care less, so she turned her attention towards the mini bus instead.

As she walked towards the vehicle, she noticed that the same eagle in Sir Lionel’s cards was imprinted on the mini bus itself, making her laugh loosely.  
She wouldn’t be surprised if her teacher is working for a secret group run by the government or something, though nobody knows for sure. 

“I guess we’ll have to keep going now, Mr and Mrs Jones.” Sir Lionel’s gaze went to her for a brief moment, and then quickly diverted back to her parents. 

Coraline turned her head to her parents, and simply waved at them before going inside the mini bus and began to let herself in.

She saw that the person on the driver’s seat was occupied, but she was expecting it to be empty. And more suspiciously, it was a girl- no, a woman. 

“Hello there, young one,” the woman greeted with a warm smile, but Coraline didn’t find any motivation to look away from her. 

“Who are you?” The blue haired tween asked innocently. The woman only laughed. 

“I’m Adelina, Sir Lionel’s fiancé,” she smiled. 

“Why are you the one driving?” Coraline asks again, trying not to be offensive, but Adelina only laughed once again. 

“Simple; because Sir Lionel can’t,” she joked with a small wink.

The way Adelina’s looking at her utterly creeped her out, because no matter how beautiful she looked, she could sense that there’s something _wrong_ with the way she acts. 

The mini bus’ doors slammed shut with a loud thud, causing her to jump in surprise, unintentionally losing her hold on her things with a high pitched squeal. 

“Calm down, Caroline, it’s just me,” Lionel stammered as he stood behind her with his palms in front of him. She swear, she felt like she was going to be killed at that moment. 

She let out a loud huff in an attempt to calm herself. “First off, it’s _Coraline_ ,” she corrected. 

“And second, you should watch it with those doors. Seriously, I thought you two were gonna murder me.” She picked up her stuff from the ground, ignoring the other two adults with her who were dead silent. 

Coraline picked the seat that anyone would kill to get, which is the one near the window; specifically the left ones on the row near the doors. 

But there’s only gonna be like 10 people total in this bus, and there were three more rows of seats left, so she has nothing to worry about anymore other than this almost two week long trip. She sat all her things on the seat beside her, and leaned against the window pane to relax herself. 

It took a few minutes for the mini bus to move, and she was kind of relieved that they were dumb enough to actually drive to Wybie’s house, which is presumably the next stop since it’s basically walking distance from her house. 

At least there’s more time to kill, plus once they do get to Wybie’s house, she finally has someone to talk to.

She wasn’t surprised when they stopped after a few minutes, as the sound of the doors opening resonated loudly inside the mini bus. 

She laughs when she hears Wybie’s grandmother ramble on and on and on, then not a moment later Mrs. Lovat is spitting facts to Sir Lionel, and she can’t help but see the action for herself. Coraline got up off her seat and rushed towards the mini bus doors. 

“I swear, if my grandson comes back with at least ONE scratch on him, I will sue you!” Mrs. Lovat barked at the young teacher, as Wybie stood there with his hands covering his face, presumably hiding his tears, and Coraline barely even managed to make her laughs inaudible.

Unfortunately, Wybie’s grandmother found her, and a wave of relief crashed upon the elder. 

“Wyborn, why didn’t you tell me that Coraline is coming there with you?” She asked, and Wybie’s reaction’ is the most priceless thing she’s ever seen in her life.

His hands slowly travelled through his curly hair, gripping it as if his life depended on it. 

“Grandma, I told you this yesterday!” He reminded her, trying not to raise his voice because that wouldn’t help anyone at this point. 

Coraline calmed herself down, then faced his grandmother with a bright smile. “Hello, Mrs. Lovat!”

“Well hello there, Coraline,” she greeted back, returning her smile. She looked at her grandson and gave him a small push. 

“Grandma!” He yelped.

“Please keep an eye on Wyborn for me,” she told them all, with nothing but worry dripping from her tone. Sir Lionel finally spoke, and Coraline almost forgot that he was there with them. 

“We will absolutely make sure that they’ll all be safe,” he implored carefully, but Wybie’s grandmother only glared at the young teacher. 

“I am NOT talking to you!”

“Thank you, grandma,” Wybie interrupted before she could say anything else, placing a kiss on his grandmother’s forehead before grabbing his things as he walked towards Coraline.

“Can we pretend that nothing happened back there?” He asked, placing all his stuff like she did on the set of seats behind her. 

“Absolutely _not_ ,” she laughed, making Wybie groan as he placed his hands on his face as he sat on his seat near the aisle. 

The doors slammed shut, and they were on their way to their next stop: Blithe Hollow. _Oh boy, this bus is going to get crowded in a hurry._

~

“I’m so glad that you three were fortunate enough to go on this trip together,” Sandra gushed to the two young boys. Since he saw the eagle card on his hands, Norman was already nervous about this whole field trip in the first place. 

“Your planned weekend sleepover paid off, didn’t it?” His mother asked his best friend, with the latter giving off a small nod. 

Of course, with Neil getting the card as well somehow eased his thoughts, but he just has a bad feeling about all this, and he’s relieved that he’s not the only one that feels the same.

“Where’s Aggie?” Neil asked, looking around for any signs of his best friend’s cousin. 

“I think she’s still in her room,” Norman answered, looking up at his room that was next to his cousin’s. His mother sighed tiredly, before going upstairs to get the other kid. 

“Isn’t this great?” The small boy looked at his best friend, who was looking at the road with a huge smile. “We get to go out of the town and meet new friends!” 

“Easy for you to say,” Norman sighed as he took a seat on their porch, resting his hands underneath his chin. Neil frowned at him, before sitting at the spot next to his best friend. 

“There would only be eight of us there,” the curly head insisted, bumping his buddy on the shoulder to try and grab his attention. 

“Why would you be afraid?”

“I don’t know,” he answered truthfully, avoiding Neil’s gaze. “I’m just not like you.” And Norman knows that his best friend is very aware of what he’s talking about. 

Now it was Neil’s turn to sigh, shaking his head as he turned towards his spiky haired companion. 

“Look, if any of the other kids there mess around with you, I’ll kick their butts.”

“I thought you liked butts,” Norman piped up with a small laugh. 

“Shut up,” Neil retorted playfully, laughing along with him as well.

The front door opened, as Sandra and Aggie silently walked out of the house, with all her things for the trip. The two slowly calmed down, with Norman creating some space as an invitation for his cousin.

“Hey guys,” she greeted with a shy smile, sitting beside Norman. 

“Hi Aggie!” Neil greeted back cheerfully with the wave of his hand. 

“So, are you excited?” Norman asked, and the two boys were genuinely shocked as she laughed like a full grown werewolf. 

“Are you kidding me?” She wheezed, but then it was quickly followed with a long sigh. “Ahh, absolutely terrified!”

“Same,” Norman agreed with a toothy grin, and then the eyebrow cousins gave off a high five as if what they’ve agreed on was even a good thing. 

“You know what, guys? I’m done,” Neil shook his head, dramatically flailing his two arms in defeat. 

“I’m done convincing you two to loosen up a bit on this trip.” And that alone made the two cousins laugh at him.

The mini bus finally parked in front of the Babcock residences, a sight that got the three children to finally get up from their seats along with all their stuff. 

The trio gave their one last goodbye to Norman’s mom, before walking towards the mini bus. They see Sir Lionel stepping out of the bus, immediately starting a conversation with the parent. 

“Good morning, Mrs. Babcock,” the young teacher greeted, as he and Sandra shook hands. 

As the three went inside the mini bus, they spotted two familiar kids from their class. If Norman remembers their names correctly, the guy’s name is Wybie- Wyborn? And then the other one is named Coraline.

“Hi!” Neil greeted with his usual cheerfulness, catching both of their attention. 

“Hi,” Coraline greeted back dismissively. 

“So… Where do we put all our stuff?” He asked carefully, sounding like he’s testing out the waters. 

Coraline stared at Neil for a while as if she’s scanning him, before pointing her thumb behind her.

“Our things are only beside our seats. Put yours wherever you want, but don’t steal our spot.” Norman didn’t feel too good about the way she said those words, but of course Neil still gave her a bright smile, screening his enthusiasm. 

“Thanks!” 

“I don’t think she was too happy about others being on this trip. Well, besides her one friend,” the small boy whispered, prompting Neil to shake his head. 

“Maybe she’s just not a morning person,” Neil argued softly as the two of them walked towards the farthest rows of seats.

As Norman and Neil settled their things down like what the first two kids did, Aggie settled for the last two seats before the back row to the left and sat beside the window pane. 

“Hey Aggie, wanna join us?” Neil asked. 

The young girl shook her head politely with a small smile, and that was enough for him to know that she wanted to be alone. 

“Alright then, we’ll be at the back if you need us.” And when he left her to her peace, the mini bus moved to their next location; Cheesebridge.

~

“Promise me you’ll be careful, Arthur,” his father reminded him carefully as the two of them stood in front of the Portley-Rind mansion. 

Eggs smiled brightly, placing a hand to calm the older man down. “Don’t worry father, I will.” 

“Is your bug spray there with you? How about your protective gear? You still need to be safe, little angel!” The tall kid didn’t even need to turn around to know the people talking. 

“Yes, father, everything is already here!” Winnie shouted from the distance, ignoring her tall friend’s laughter from below the staircase. 

“You have reminded me of all this last night! Repeatedly!” She added, struggling to drag all the things her parents had prepared for her, forgetting that she wasn’t allowed to drag along a single maid with her. 

Eggs didn’t waste time and dropped all his things to help his best friend with hers. 

“Don’t fret, Winnie,” he laughed, carrying her biggest luggages. ”They only want what’s the best for you.”

“Sure, they do,” she groaned, rolling her eyes tiredly. “Hey, thanks by the way,” she added, giving him a grateful smile.

“No problem!” He beamed brightly. 

“Say, why don't you carry our lighter things, and I carry the heavier ones?” The look on Winnie's face made him confused. 

“You sure?” She asked with a raised brow. Eggs nodded firmly, giving her a smile as they both walked down the staircase. 

“I’m glad Arthur is going to be there with you, Winnifred,” Lord Portley-Rind acknowledged, and even though the two friends shared the same hatred towards him after what happened in the past, they managed to look polite as they faced him. 

“Please, look after our little angel for us, Mr. Trubshaw,” Lady Portley-Rind added.

“Oh don’t worry about it, your lordships,” Herbert piped in. 

“The two of them went through a lot together, I’m sure they’ll be fine.” Eggs hated the fact that his father’s words were both true and a tease; specifically towards him.

The mini bus arrived just in time, and the two kids gave their goodbyes to their parents before approaching the vehicle. Sir Lionel stepped out of the bus, approaching the adults instinctively.

As the duo entered the mini bus, they already saw the familiar faces of their classmates. 

“Hey guys,” Eggs greeted, placing his and Winnie’s things on the seats to the right, which were near the mini bus’ doors. 

“Hey!” Neil greeted from behind, and Eggs was more than happy to know that he’s talking to someone else other than Winnie. Not that that’s ever a bad thing.

He let himself walk down the aisle, even though he wasn’t particularly close to anyone in this bus other than Winnie. 

When he arrived at the back, he spotted Neil, Norman and Wybie playing UNO cards. 

“Sup bro! You play?” Neil asked him, and a grin quickly grew on Eggs’ face. 

“Bring it.”

~

Lionel looked over the children with a small smile, genuinely relieved that they’re interacting with one another. 

“Seems like they’re still familiarizing each other, no?” Adelina acknowledged from the driver’s seat, her mouth curving into a smile, with her eyes locked onto the road ahead.

“I didn’t expect them to immediately _communicate_ with each other, honestly,” he pointed out, shaking his head in disbelief. 

“They didn’t even look like they knew each other at all,” she added with a small chuckle. 

For their entire drive towards their last destination, the thrumming sound of the engine and the light laughter of the boys at the back of the mini bus were the only noises he was hearing. 

The bus was getting farther and farther away from the city, making the young teacher wonder how the devil does this boy go to school and back in a day.

Adelina’s eyes darted towards him for a short second, her face filled with nothing but worry. But then, there was a lone house at the end of the road. The whole place was surrounded with mulberry fields, and is the only house in this entire area.

And sure enough, the boy in his red jacket came out of the house whilst carrying his things, with all his relatives outside their house.

~

“Take care of yourself, young man,” Kameyo mentioned to his grandson, firmly holding his shoulder. 

“Don’t worry, _sobo_. I will,” the one eyed kid promised, nodding his head with a bright smile. 

“Are you sure you can take care of everything without my help?” Kubo turned his head towards Hosato, his uncle figure. 

“I’ll be alright, Kubo,” he reassured with a calm smile. “But I think Mari would definitely miss you more than anyone else here.”

“Will not!” Mari retorted defensively, making their family chuckle in delight. Kubo walked towards the toddler, kneeling down to her height, before giving her a small smile. 

“Your father would need all the help he can get while I’m gone, alright?” He implored softly.

“Do you really need to go, _aniki_?” Hashi asked with a frown, and although that usually worked, this time he has no other choice. 

“I have to,” he sighed. “But I promise, I’ll be back.”

As the mini bus hit its breaks, Kubo tussled Mari's hair before rising up from the ground, before bowing down to his family. 

“Stay safe, Kubo,” Kameyo implored one last time, giving her grandson a smile. He waved his hand to them as a goodbye, before making his way towards the mini bus. 

Lionel stepped out of the bus, approaching Kubo with a sly smile. “Sorry if our place is a bit far from society,” the one eyed kid greeted with a shy chuckle.

“Oh, not to worry,” the young teacher waved it off with a laugh. “I just need to talk to your family, and then we’ll go to our destination.”

He nodded with a grin. “Alright, sir. Thank you!”

And with that, Kubo finally made his way towards the mini bus, taking a slow and deep breath in, before finally stepping inside.

“What’s up, _eyepatch_?” He can’t help but smirk when he hears her familiar voice, feeling the corners of his mouth turn up. 

“Giving me nicknames already?” Kubo teased with a lopsided grin, and that alone prompted Winnie to grab the nearest thing around her (in this case, it’s her travel pillow) and throw it towards him without warning. 

“Hey!” 

“That’s for you to not get your head around _ideas_ ,” she countered with her mouth set into a hard line. The mere fact that Winnie will never let anyone else have the last words but her made him laugh, but he kept it low this time.

“So, where do we put our things?” He asked, looking around the mini bus. Kubo noticed that almost all the seats were taken, but one pair. 

“Next to your seat, kid,” Coraline answered from beside them, blowing up a bubblegum with a pop. 

The one eyed kid nodded, his eye darting towards the last unoccupied seats. “Thanks.”

When he got there and settled down his things, he just noticed that all the boys on the trip were at the back, playing some sort of card game. 

“UNO!” He heard Eggs shout from behind. Given Kubo’s recent experience with cards, he’s a little bit worried about what they’re doing back there.

When Kubo looked to his right however, he saw that girl who turned in her eagle card last. Agatha, was it? 

He’s supposed to apologize to her because he thinks that he has somehow creeped her out the last time they met eye to eye.

But as soon as he stood up to do so, the mini bus’ doors closed with a loud thud, making him and everyone else fall immediately silent.


End file.
